50°Good evening
Giants wide receiver Sterling Shepard (3) participates in training activities...

Giants wide receiver Sterling Shepard (3) participates in training activities at the NFL football team's practice facility, Sunday, July 30, 2023, in East Rutherford, N.J.  Credit: AP/John Minchillo

Sterling Shepard was activated off the physically unable to perform list Sunday and practiced with the Giants for the first time since he tore the anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee in Week 3 last season.

Now comes the hard part for the 30-year-old receiver: trying to be patient as he works his way through training camp.

Shepard said Sunday that he might have pushed himself too hard in camp last summer as he tried to come back from an Achilles tendon tear that short-circuited his 2021 season.

He’s determined not to do that again.

“Did I push myself too much? Yeah,’’ he said. “They [the training staff] tell me what I need to do and try to save me from myself. But last year, I felt like I’m one of those guys where .  .  . I’m out here on the field [and] somebody’s trying to come sub me, like, ‘Get back. I’m about to go to another rep.’

“But you know, I just feel like this time around, I’ve got to play a little bit smarter and really listen to those guys. Because they know best and they have my best interest [at heart].’’

But balancing the need to not push too hard with the need to prove to the coaching staff that he’s the same player he was before missing most of the last two seasons with injuries might be tricky for Shepard.

The 5-10, 196-pounder, a second-round pick in 2016 out of Oklahoma, is not a lock to make the roster after signing a non-guaranteed one-year, $1.3 million contract with the Giants in March.

There are 14 receivers in camp, including veteran slot men Cole Beasley and Jamison Crowder, whom general manager Joe Schoen brought in this summer.

“Good competition,’’ coach Brian Daboll said when asked about all those slot receivers he now has to choose from.

“That’s what training camp is. Try to bring as many good players as you can in and let them compete it out .  .  . Competition is good for everybody.

“Whoever we think is the best .  .  . at the end of the day, [those are] the guys that are going to play. They all have to earn it. They all understand that.’’

Shepard insists he’s not feeling pressured by all that competition.

“It is what it is,’’ he said.

“I control what I can control. And that’s staying on the field, and when I’m on the field, doing something. So however it shakes out, I believe in God and I believe that He has something planned for me, regardless of whatever, however it shakes out.’’

More than likely, Shepard, who has 362 receptions for 4,038 yards (11.2 yards per catch) and 22 touchdowns in his seven seasons, will get every opportunity to make the Week 1 roster. It will help his cause that though he’s primarily a slot receiver, he also has experience playing the outside positions.

“I’ve always had that versatility,’’ Shepard said. “It’s great having that experience, being outside and knowing that I can win outside. I’m not just banked as a slot receiver. And especially when you’ve got guys like Crowder and Beasley who’ve done it for many years at a high level.

“You want to be able to have that versatility. It’s the easiest way [to get] on the field.’’

In his first day at practice, Shepard looked fine running routes in 11-on-11 action. He said it was great “actually going against somebody.’’

“I’ve been sitting over there for months, running routes by myself and just trying to visualize somebody there,’’ he said. “So to actually have somebody there, it honestly was 10 times better. I wasn’t even thinking about my planting [the leg] or anything like that. I felt great.’’

SUBSCRIBE

Unlimited Digital AccessOnly 25¢for 6 months

ACT NOWSALE ENDS SOON | CANCEL ANYTIME